Dublin Tourist Traps & Scams

Beechwoodspark

Every so often in city centre I’ve seen a small fella maybe 5,3 in height around 50 yrs old who goes around pointing at his ears and then demanding money off ppl. I think he is indicating he’s deaf and therefore ppl should give him money ?!

He targets women in particular and from watching him over the years he tries to unpleasantly intimidate them into handing over a few euro. He scurries off when challenged.

Usual stomping ground is O’Connell bridge, the quays, Nassau st dawson st

Beechwoodspark

Plasandrunt wrote: »

The small grey haired lad who pretends he's deaf.

Always see him in the bookies

Just seeing this now- same guy I would think

L1011

Masala wrote: »

Are the 'Lock-hards' still operating on top of O'Connell Street??

There's no on street parking left for them to do it at

murpho999

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

I'd really advise most tourists to skip Dublin to be honest. It's a festering hole of a city. Junkies everywhere. Obnoxious locals and a total lack of culture. The city and the locals have more in common with English cities like Bristol and Sheffield than they do with true Gaels.


There's far more for tourists (and Irish people) in places like West Cork, Kerry, West Clare and Connemara.

Wow, do you generalise much.

How can there be more irish people in places like West Cork and Kerry compared to the most populated part of the country?

There's not junkies everywhere as you claim and I've been in Dublin with plenty of tourists (had foreign family visitors over) and they all love going to Dublin for pubs, museums, Phoenix Park, architecture etc.

It's only your blinkered hatred of Dublin that shows in your post.

whisky_galore

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

I'd really advise most tourists to skip Dublin to be honest. It's a festering hole of a city. Junkies everywhere. Obnoxious locals and a total lack of culture. The city and the locals have more in common with English cities like Bristol and Sheffield than they do with true Gaels.


There's far more for tourists (and Irish people) in places like West Cork, Kerry, West Clare and Connemara.

Do you measure peoples' heads to determine if they are "true Gaels"?

Beechwoodspark

About five years ago near the national gallery an Indian guy in a turban out of nowhere stopped me and insisted in engaging in conversation.

I was wary and stood well back from him in case he was a pickpocket or something

long story short he went through his “routine” and asked me to think of my favorite color and a number

He somehow wrote them onto a small piece of paper which he handed to me - not quite sure how he did it but it was some sleight of hand type of effort

He wasn’t overly impressed when I said wow that’s great and walked off while he demanded money for this “trick” - he wanted 20 euro I think!

murpho999

whisky_galore wrote: »

Not unique to Dublin but legalised Euronet Atm scam.

https://digg.com/video/euronet-atm-scam

Yes, but I don't get why people use them nowadays.

Cash on its way out and it's easy just to pay with bankcard or phone nowadays and just avoid it everywhere.

Pintman Paddy Losty

murpho999 wrote: »

Wow, do you generalise much.

How can there be more irish people in places like West Cork and Kerry compared to the most populated part of the country?

There's not junkies everywhere as you claim and I've been in Dublin with plenty of tourists (had foreign family visitors over) and they all love going to Dublin for pubs, museums, Phoenix Park, architecture etc.

It's only your blinkered hatred of Dublin that shows in your post.

Obviously your family are going to say they enjoyed it. They're not going to say "Murpho, didn't really enjoy being harassed by a plague of zombies and shelling out 7 quid for a sh1t pint of guinness" or "The true blue salt o' de eearth Dublin humour on display in Dublin pubs was invasive and obnoxious"


Any objective and non-biased bystander will admit that a delicious open crab sandwich and a pint of Murphy's by the sea and clean air in West Cork, far surpasses a greasy "one and one" from a chipper in Dublin. The people are also much friendlier and laid back. As I said, Dubs, and other inhabitants of the pale, have more in common with the English than the rest of Ireland.

Beechwoodspark

Is the craic of ppl getting on dart and putting small packets of tissues on every table then aggressively demanding money if any passengers take the tissues still going on?

punisher5112

Beechwoodspark wrote: »

Is the craic of ppl getting on dart and putting small packets of tissues on every table then aggressively demanding money if any passengers take the tissues still going on?

Roma gypsies do this, they also do it with air freshener, candles etc....
They go through carriages playing an instrument that it took the 60 years to learn one time, off time at that....

Woke Hogan

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

I'd really advise most tourists to skip Dublin to be honest. It's a festering hole of a city. Junkies everywhere. Obnoxious locals and a total lack of culture. The city and the locals have more in common with English cities like Bristol and Sheffield than they do with true Gaels.


There's far more for tourists (and Irish people) in places like West Cork, Kerry, West Clare and Connemara.

I agree with this 100%.

Whenever I'm speaking with people abroad and they ask me questions about visiting Ireland, I always make it clear that natives of Dublin wouldn't be considered truly Irish by many people from "down de country" and that a person from Dublin would have more in common with someone from Britain.

I go on to explain that "Dubs" are generally culturally British rather than Irish in their practices, similarly to how Russians in Latvia are still considered Russian despite having lived there for generations. I usually cite examples like how fans of Dublin GAA appropriate habits from soccer into their match attendance by singing etc, their use of English slang such as "mate" or "bloke" or their dependency on "chippers" and love for Brendan O Carroll.

My best advice for most of these people is to research the best places to visit outside of Dublin and drive there directly from the airport. There are also great express buses to other towns that they can take which only stop briefly in Dublin city centre so it's extra convenient for them to avoid Dublin altogether. I visited Russia during the Soviet Union era and I would rather live there than Dublin.

Spanish Eyes

Plasandrunt wrote: »

The small grey haired lad who pretends he's deaf.

Always see him in the bookies

Yep a scammer if ever I saw one. Was always around Davy Byrnes and the Bailey (money talks ha ha).

I am partially deaf myself, so would always say to him, hey didn't know being deaf meant you need to beg. Chancer.

Rubberchikken

Who'd be stupid enough to fall for any scam?
The cynic in me keeps me immune from the chancers out there

punisher5112

Laptop in a bag or tablet, turns out to be water bottles.
The guy that's late for a flight and has loads of real leather (I mean knock off) costs and he can't bring them with him, all while in a rental car and usually has his passport on the passenger seat
...

Roma gypsies taken over the city and will hunt you down for money.

whisky_galore

murpho999 wrote: »

Yes, but I don't get why people use them nowadays.

Cash on its way out and it's easy just to pay with bankcard or phone nowadays and just avoid it everywhere.

It's not gone yet.

unhappys10

whisky_galore wrote: »

It's not gone yet.

Just about, I couldn't tell you the last time I had or used actual cash.

EmmetSpiceland

Beechwoodspark wrote: »

Every so often in city centre I’ve seen a small fella maybe 5,3 in height around 50 yrs old who goes around pointing at his ears and then demanding money off ppl. I think he is indicating he’s deaf and therefore ppl should give him money ?!

He targets women in particular and from watching him over the years he tries to unpleasantly intimidate them into handing over a few euro. He scurries off when challenged.

Usual stomping ground is O’Connell bridge, the quays, Nassau st dawson st

I don’t know if what that lad does would be considered a “scam”.

Anyone begging, whether through direct request or made up “sob story”, for a couple of quid aren’t exactly high flying grifters.

whisky_galore

unhappys10 wrote: »

Just about, I couldn't tell you the last time I had or used actual cash.

Good for you.

Woke Hogan

The denizens of the capital love to blame the foreign bogeyman for all of their social ills. Meanwhile the very witty populace of the inner city were moved out to "de flats" of Ballymun because they made a dog's dinner of their original home, before turning "the 'Mun" into a dump of its own.

They're very quick to be looking for "fess-sill-ih-tees" for themselves and caterwauling about being looked down at for being "working class" but then the entire Roma and black communities are blamed for the few bad apples in their bunch.

I would recommend that the "send 'em back" merchants of boards.ie think about it seriously for a few minutes and maybe consider that maybe a lack of "fess-sill-ih-tees" across the board is to blame, rather than some sort of inherent badness in immigrants to Dublin.

unhappys10

whisky_galore wrote: »

Good for you.

Get with the times. Oul farts like yourself carrying cash are dinosaurs about to become extinct.

whisky_galore

unhappys10 wrote: »

Get with the times. Oul farts like yourself carrying cash are dinosaurs about to become extinct.

I actually don't carry much cash, you little shyte.
Mostly card but feel free to assume whatever the **** you want.

enricoh

Right on woke Hogan, it's just off the top of my head I can't think of one positive the Roma bring to Ireland.
If I was a solicitor doing whiplash claims I'd be very positive about their contribution though!

enricoh

unhappys10 wrote: »

Get with the times. Oul farts like yourself carrying cash are dinosaurs about to become extinct.

What a revelation, gotta love the internet!!

unhappys10

whisky_galore wrote: »

I actually don't carry much cash, you little shyte.
Mostly card but feel free to assume whatever the **** you want.

Go back to the nursing home grandad

whisky_galore

unhappys10 wrote: »

Go back to the nursing home grandad

Go fcuk yourself.

unhappys10

whisky_galore wrote: »

Go fcuk yourself.

Hit a nerve did I, watch that blood pressure there oul lad

Necro

Mod:

Cut out the sniping or further sanctions will follow. If you have an issue with a post, report it.

boombang

Ah here, leave it ou'!

Glad to hear the short gambler has got such attention. I've been gruffly brushing that gob****e off for about twenty years now.

One day I'm going to slowly write down f*** off on his piece of paper in reply.

Spanish Eyes

Well at the risk of being judged as a miserable so and so, I NEVER give money to anyone in the street. They can get the next person along but not me.

Anyway it will solve itself with tap and go and little cash being used now.

Pintman Paddy Losty

Pintman Paddy Losty wrote: »

Obviously your family are going to say they enjoyed it. They're not going to say "Murpho, didn't really enjoy being harassed by a plague of zombies and shelling out 7 quid for a sh1t pint of guinness" or "The true blue salt o' de eearth Dublin humour on display in Dublin pubs was invasive and obnoxious"


Any objective and non-biased bystander will admit that a delicious open crab sandwich and a pint of Murphy's by the sea and clean air in West Cork, far surpasses a greasy "one and one" from a chipper in Dublin. The people are also much friendlier and laid back. As I said, Dubs, and other inhabitants of the pale, have more in common with the English than the rest of Ireland.

Wow, some nice seafood and a pint by the seaside is nicer than a cheap takeaway in the middle of a city? What a fantastic insight, have you any more pearls of wisdom you'd like to share?

I've said this before, people have this blinkered view of Dublin because their experience is (usually) pretty limited. They get off the train in Connolly / Heuston or the bus at Busáras and don't like what they see. Or they travel up to Croker through one of the most deprived and dilapidated areas in the entire country, looking down on the place as they pass through, usually eating greasy one and one's, ironically enough.

They never get outside Dublin 1 or 2 and think that's all it has to offer. Take your example of West Cork, as a comparison. So a crab sambo is better than a cod and chips. Let's compare practically everything else....... How are the cinemas, theatres, bowling alleys, sporting venues, comedy clubs, Michelin starred restaurants, libraries, supermarkets, zoos, IKEA, ski slopes, operas, concert halls, go karting tracks, snooker halls, skating rinks, shopping centres? How favourably do they compare then?

What about access to other services you might only occasionally need, such as schools, hospitals, NCT centres, garda stations, practically all government institutions, post offices, fire brigade stations, airports and train stations? Does West Cork still come out on top? Can you see how ridiculous it is to cherry pick something to suit your argument while ignoring the parts that tear it asunder?